That Syria's equaliser came from a penalty that was disputed — perhaps even dubious — merely added another infuriating plot twist to this tumultuous qualifying campaign.

On yet another frustrating night, the greatest consolation for coach Ange Postecoglou was that this time it will be the referee who feels the wrath of exasperated Australian fans, not his selections or tactics.

So mark down Tuesday night in Sydney as yet another edge-of-the-seat moment for the Socceroos and, given what is at stake, for Australian football.

Upon his appointment as FFA chief executive five years ago, David Gallop forecast a time when the A-League rather than the Socceroos would drive the game here.

But, for now at least, the Socceroos' performance remains paramount to the game's psychological health; perhaps even more so given the troubled lead-in to the A-League season.

That trouble has been more the result of typically byzantine politics than the steadily improving league itself. Although the abrupt departure of Wanderers' coach Tony Popovic to Turkish battler Karabukspor wasn't exactly the start the season needed.

Popovic was at the heart of the rise of a strategically vital club and his absence will no doubt cause a few tremors. Unless you are one of those who believed his defensive but highly effective tactics were more eyesore than eye candy.

Otherwise the A-League's low-key launch with the recycled "You've Gotta Have a Team" slogan and daylight fireworks didn't exactly inspire goose bumps about the opening weekend.

Frustrated that they have just one vote on the FFA's 10-member board and emboldened by FIFA's intervention into Australian football politics, the club's language has gone from disgruntled to outright rebellious in recent times.

So while the Socceroos battle away for World Cup qualification and the A-League enters another future-defining season, Australian football is polarised and, to some degree, paralysed.

The FFA remains adamant it must maintain control while most A-League clubs are equally confident only they can guarantee the game's growth. Stuck in the middle are the state associations which are uncertain whether an empowered A-League will help them grow the game or merely transfer wealth from the grass roots to inevitably self-interested clubs.

What no-one can accurately measure is the true commercial potential of Australian football.

Is it an abject underachiever hamstrung by a retrograde administration as the clubs claim? Or is the apparent stagnation a consequence of the still mostly loss-making A-League club's inability to generate more revenue in a fiercely competitive marketplace?

The inability to sign a more lucrative commercial TV rights deal than the six-year, $346 million agreement struck with Fox Sports is cited by A-League bosses as the FFA's single biggest failing.

But if the dollars and cents did not stack up as the clubs anticipated, there is a sliver of hope the new deal will at least deliver greater exposure for a league that was scandalously neglected by its former free-to-air partner, SBS.

Fox Sports on-sold rights to Saturday night blockbusters — starting with this weekend's Sydney FC-Melbourne Victory game — to Ten, reportedly for less than it had received from SBS.

The (perhaps optimistic) benefit is the greater exposure and cross-promotion Ten could provide.

Incongruously, you might get a better idea of Ten's emotional investment in football watching its prime summer sports product the Big Bash League than watching A-League games.

Substantial cross promotion of games to the BBL's audience of more than 1 million viewers would be valuable for the A-League which has generally attracted fewer than 100,000 viewers on Fox Sports and SBS.

But for now?

The Socceroos still carry the burden of Australian football. On Tuesday night we find out if an away goal in Malaysia made the load a bit lighter or if that disputed penalty made it too heavy to bear.